Growing up with 24 hour access to information and technology is a recent enough revelation in Ireland and many tech savvy parents are still unsure what boundaries should be in place for their children when it comes to having a life online. The internet is a great resource with a world of knowledge waiting to be discovered but with tablets, phones and gaming consoles in children’s bedrooms across the country the home, once a place of safety is no longer off limits from bullies.

For Parents it is important to know what each device you give your child is capable of. Know the applications they are using, and who they are communicating with. For younger children and teens make sure they know you will be checking the device often. Continuous learning on the adults part is key, Talk to your child about new technology and apps, what they are used for and what fun stuff you can do with them and get the child to demonstrate the app for you so you can gain an understanding of how they use it.

Important rules:

1. Never give out your personal details online, these include your real name, address, age, school or phone number.

2. Set your profiles to private or that only your friends can see them.

3. Don’t accept friend requests from people you do not know offline. Even if you have mutual friends.

4. Never check-in “at home” or announce when you are going on holidays.

5. Never give out your password to any one online.

6. Remember nothing is private, people can and will screenshot posts even if you delete them.

And most importantly always remember that everyone likes to put their best selves online. Everything you see on Facebook/Instagram/Snapchat may not really represent how someone else lives or feels. Facebook envy and pressure to fit in is a real thing.

Almost half a million Irish customers of collective buying website Living Social have been urged by the Data Protection Commissioner’s office to change the passwords associated with their account after hackers gained unauthorised access to databases containing customer details such as names, email addresses, date of birth and passwords. Living Social has stressed that the database containing credit card details had not been compromised.

Tips for Online Password Security

Create a strong password, use letters, numbers and a symbol if possible. Never use spouses, children or pets names.

Use different passwords for different accounts. If one account is subsequently hacked, your other accounts will not be at risk.

Use the Security Question option sparingly, if there is an option to verify with phone or email always select it. Many people close to you will know most security questions.